Sakuno, Maybe?
by Alice39
Summary: Dying and being placed in the toddler Sakuno's body? That's like, more messed up than me massacring a hundred of people. With tennis balls, no less. Honestly.
1. Reincarnated!

**Sakuno, Maybe?**

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Summary: Dying and being place in the toddler Sakuno's body? That's like more messed up than me massacring a hundred of people. With tennis balls, no less.

* * *

A/N: Hehe, I wanted to try this one out. It's been a long time since I wrote for the fandom, after all. This is short but the next chapter would be longer.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own POT

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**Chapter 1: Reincarnated?!**

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I died.

Just like that.

It wasn't really cliche, but it was more of... dying because of my inane clumsiness.

Well, it isn't my fault that a truck hit me when I was crossing the road now, is it?

What a stupid way to die.

I wanted to die of old age with my husband after I have been successful at my career. I wanted to die in my bed, a victorian, princess-style one, surrounded by my beautiful children.

But no.

I had to die before I could even do any of those things.

I had to die when I was still young. A high school student at that.

I could remember the faint scream. I could remember the loud sirens of an ambulance and I could remember that I hadn't made it.

At the final moment before my death, everything became surprisingly clear. I can see a man that's frantically on the phone, calling someone. I saw a woman gasp and looked at me pitifully. A horde of onlookers arrived and gasped and were full of sorrow. The sirens draw closer as the familiar ambulance arrived but...

...The impact must have been too much, I didn't survive.

I died.

And I left my mother, my father, and my two wonderful twin brothers.

And... I was left with a feeling of nothingness.

* * *

As I died, I thought about what would happen to me.

Will I be entering Heaven or Hell? Underworld? Hades?

And maybe, I'll meet God and be a little angel and looked at my family from afar.

But that wasn't what happened.

I opened my eyes and saw a pretty woman. She had dark brown hair and light brown eyes that seemed to glitter as she continued to stare at me.

I blinked. Once. Twice.

Wait-what?!

The female doesn't even look familiar at all, and I thrust my hands like I was on a tantrum, breaking free from her grasp. The woman was tall, way taller than me that is.

She didn't even flinch, the woman. She just smiled and cooed, "Sakuno dear is so cute and so energetic today."

Sakuno?

Doesn't the name sounds familiar...? Ah, Echizen-kun's girlfriend. From Prince of Tennis, I mean.

Wait.

I tilted my head to the side and asked, "Where's Sakuno?"

My voice sounded squeaky and high-pitched, like that of a small brat's.

Weird.

"Sakuno dear," The woman hid a small grin as she picked me up and kissed my cheek, "You are my Sakuno."

Rewind.

I'm Sakuno?!

I looked down and noticed my little arms and my little feet. I wore a, gasp, pink dress with frills. And ribbons and all those other girly little things.

I looked around. The room look like a baby's room. There was a small violet crib in the corner and there were playmats all over the floor.

I reincarnated and... became Sakuno?

And wasn't Prince of Tennis some sort of anime? Or maybe I'm a different Sakuno...?

What?!

My brain probably can't take it. Probably.

I fainted.

* * *

"Hahaha!" A loud and obnoxious chuckle rang through the room and effectively woke me up.

Bitch.

I opened my tiny little eyes and was not really so surprised when I saw another unfamiliar person.

Actually-She looked familiar.

"Hahaha," The woman snorted and then she bit her cheeks to stop laughing. She looked at my mother and asked, "You're daughter fainted?!"

"Don't be like that mother." My mother told her... mother?

I coughed.

No wonder the obnoxious laugh was so familiar.

My mother noticed that I was stirring and pointed at me with gleaming eyes, "Look at Sakuno dear, she woke up!"

"Heh." A smile formed on the other woman's lips. She went towards me and then she cooed, "Do you remember me?"

"Of course, Sumire-chan~"

My voiced sounded so squeaky as I sang. And I noticed that both woman were staring at me like I was insane or something like that.

Which I am not.

At all.

And that's when the thought struck me. I wasn't supposed to act like a teenager, especially since I was just a small brat.

"You're child..." Ryuuzaki-sensei, oops, it Grandma now, opened her mouth in slight amazement. She continued to stare at me as she finished her statement, "...is interesting."

My mother mutely agreed, shocked as well.

At least they understand that I'm special.

Oh well.

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A/N: And that... is the prologue. It's short, I know, but the next chapters would be longer. Oh and please drop by a review. You know I love that.


	2. I'm a toddler!

**Sakuno, Maybe?**

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Summary: Dying and being place in the toddler Sakuno's body? That's like more messed up than me massacring a hundred of people. With tennis balls, no less.

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A/N: Hey! Thanks for reading this story. Please read, review and subscribe :D There will be another AN at the end, I hope that you guys can read it :D

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Prince of Tennis

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So... I really think that I became Ryuzaki Sakuno.

In the flesh, baby.

And I can totally speak flawless Japanese, just don't mind the squeaky and terribly high-pitched tone. I'm a toddler.

Must have been anime physics or something.

But still... How could I have become her? And was this even possible? And even though I've dreamt of Prince of Tennis so much, I never really thought that I would be kind of living here.

I mean! It's anime, for god's sake!

Ouch. I think that hurt my otaku pride. But realistically speaking, I being transported here defy logic. Because no matter how much I had wanted to come here, it just seemed... Impossible.

Memories from my past life have... Dulled. I know that I used to watch Prince of Tennis, Katekyo Hitman Reborn, Full Metal Alchemist and all those crazy lovable animes. And, I also remember that I was a snarky totally cool and special senior in my high school. I love pockies, just in case any one might ask.

But that's about it. I remember the things I wanted and the things I did but...

I can't remember anyone. I know that I had my parents a set of twin brothers but that's about it. I don't know who they are.

Hell, I don't even know who I am.

I know my personality but not my name. It became some kind of blank hole.

And now I guess that I probably shouldn't just mope around and just get up and move on. At least, I'm alive.

...I think I am.

But... If I really am Sakuno, then...

Hell yeah!

Yukimura-kun, Fuji-kun, Tezuka-buchou, Sanada-fukubuchou, Niou, Eiji, Marui! There are millions of bishies here, hell yeah!

But then again, I'm a total RyoSaku shipper back in my past life so...

Do I make a move towards Ryoma? I mean, essentially I'm Ryuzaki Sakuno but at the same time I'm not really her.

It's making my brain waves explode just thinking about it.

What happens, happens.

I'll just worry about those kinds of things when the time comes but come to think of it...

Should I live as Sakuno and be all dainty and adorable or should I live as me? Which means total awesomeness in the very core.

Heh. Easy choice.

Besides, I probably wouldn't mess up the events, right? I meaaan, it's not like I'm the one who plays tennis matches and stuffs, right?

Speaking of tennis... I think I saw Ryuzaki-oops, Grandma, arrived a while ago. Maybe I should pay her a visit on her room...?

And take a tennis lesson to the boot, too!

Heh, this will be the amazing beginning of the legendary Sakuno Chronicles.

And with that, I sneakily walked out of my baby-ish room. As sneakily as my little legs can take me, that is.

I sneakily opened the door room and looked around like a jounin ninja. Heh, I'm having a Naruto moment and it's pure awesomeness.

That is, until someone coughed and told me, "What exactly are you doing in MY room, Sakuno?"

Bitch. She totally ruined my moment but she was, I think, family so it can pass...

Probably.

Well, off to do what I came here for, then.

I sent her a toothy grin and created the cutest puppy eyes that I have ever created. I tilted my head to the side and I asked, "Can grandma teach me how to play tennis?"

Use super-cute toddler powers: mission success.

Grandma looked at me like I was insane before tears leaked into her eyes and she hugged me furiously like she was some bear. She whispered to me, "Finally! Someone in the family wanted to play tennis!"

Oh.

I think it's safe to say that neither my mom nor my dad does play tennis.

"Why?" I asked cutely in my ultra high-pitched toddler tone, "Tennis is so awesome!"

Grandma pulled back and looked at me like I was some sort of angel that was dropped as a blessing of some sorts. Which might technically be the case, but who knows?

She pulled me up and placed me in her soft and squishy bed that had tennis patterned sheets. She shifted and went to some antique cabinet in the corner of her room and she rummaged under it.

I stared.

Okay, I retract the staring part. I think this may take a while so I'll just reflect while Grandma goes and do her stuffs.

So, basic information is that I'm Ryuzaki Sakuno, the cute and adorably shy girl that has a crush on the annoyingly arrogant but nevertheless talented freshman rookie who had hailed from states.

This... Universe? World? Afterlife? Whatever. Whatever this is, I am living in a place where the anime and manga series Prince of Tennis happens.

And if you don't know what POT is, I suggest that you go and drown yourselves in the river. I mean, who wouldn't know about them? They have cool DZ, that's Dragonball Z for the ignorant, moves and they're just plain hot and handsome. And they play sports.

So, moving on since I tend to ramble and rant about unnecessary things, I have just decided that I'll live as Ryuzaki Sakuno my own way.

I know that she's adorable and cute and all that, I'm a major fan, but I probably wouldn't be able to handle pretending to be shy and adorable all the freaking time. I might explode!

And then there will be the end of the world and not even Yukimura's Yips can stop me, mwahahaha!

Enough. I sound crazy, maybe even crazier than I think, who knows?

So, I mentally cleared my throat, I'll be Ryuzaki bad-ass Sakuno.

But now that I think about it, Sakuno-chan was bad-ass too. In the manga, that is. Oh well, I'll just make her more bad-ass.

I'm a hundred percent sure that I won't screw up any important events and I wouldn't change them. Probably.

But trust my super great Hyper Intuition, and my super great blood line that I have descended of, and everything will be fine.

And if you didn't catch on which series that came from, you should really watch more anime, you lazy bum.

Before I can get even crazier, Grandma shouted in pleasure since she already found whatever it is that she was looking for. She approached me and handed me something and I blankly stared.

"A tennis racquet?"

And an old one at that. What is this, a family heirloom?

"It's good that you already know what racquets are." She chuckled as she made a move and sat beside me. Well duh, I know about it since Yukimura was probably married to his tennis racquet or something. She gave another raspy chuckle and she added, "But that isn't any other ordinary racket."

What...?

What is it, some sort of Mary Sue equipment that can make me win against all my matches? Or maybe it's something that has made the animals in the Ice Age extinct?

Damn my imaginations. Those things aren't even realistic.

...But then again, it isn't realistic to just go and appear on some Anime world and take the place of one characters, is it?

Touche.

I am so good at contradicting myself, I think that I'll have a good shot in being a hot-shot lawyer at this rate.

Fading back to boring reality, I realized that Grandma was looking at me and probably expected me to say something. So me, being the adorable girl I am, asked, "What does it do? Grant wishes?"

"Kind of." Grandma said with a wistful tone. I can't believe that she actually answered it seriously but before I can think any further, she looked at me with glowing eyes and said, "I had it with me when I won my first-ever tennis match."

Oh. So it WAS some kind of heirloom, but come to think of it, did Canon-Sakuno possessed one...?

I narrowed my little eyes in confusion, "Why are you giving me this, grandma?"

"Because I never knew that someone in the family would take up tennis." She stared at the ceiling and I saw some crease here and there and I realized that she really was of old age. I looked at her and she, in turn, looked at the tennis racquet with a gentle smile that I would never ever dream of seeing her have. She met my eyes and whispered, "But you did, Sakuno, you did."

...What?

She let out a small chuckle as she added, "And at such a young age, too."

The glow of that tender smile somehow infected me, so I smiled as well. At the moment, everything was so... Perfect. Nah, wrong word. It was so nice. So awesomeness.

But all good things must come to an end, as so many other people had said, and the atmosphere was disrupted when the door opened and my mother stepped in and greeted, "It's time to eat, mother."

"Thanks for not asking me to eat as well." I pointed out as I crossed my tiny arms across my chest and looked away.

"Eh, Sakuno dear?" My mom blinked. Once. Twice. Silence hung in the air before she decidedly broke it, "What are you doing in mother's room?"

I looked at her excitedly and announced, "I asked Grandma to teach me how to play tennis!"

"H-ha." My mom's eyes grew comically wide and then her mouth gaped. It didn't mesh well with her beautiful features.

"I told you that your daughter was interesting, Yukari." Grandma stated, letting out a round of rambocious laughter. She gestured at me and disclosed, "She asked me to give her a tennis lesson a while ago. And such a young age, too!"

She laughed again and she clarified her last statement, "Practicing at the age of four, she'll be good at this!"

Oh, so I was four years of age. I thought I was three or something. Close enough.

"I see." Mom looked at me with a grateful smile before her glance returned back to Grandma's and she said, "Dinner's already prepared downstairs."

"We'll see you downstairs." Grandma nodded her head towards my mom and she seemed to get the message because she bowed at Grandma and sent another smile towards my direction, and then went to who knows where.

Probably downstairs.

Grandma pulled me up the bed but I planted my feet in the ground defiantly. I said, "But I want to practice and learn how to play tennis!"

Damn, I really sounded like a brat but technically my body is the same as a small brat's so it's more or less fine. And no, any objection would be rejected.

"Sure, sure" She patted my head and then let out a chuckle as she reminded, "I'll start teaching you tomorrow, okay?"

"Tommorow?" My lips formed into a frown and I crossed my arms and pouted, "But I want to learn today!"

"It's already nighttime. You'll have a hard time if you can't see the tennis balls." She reasoned out as she forcibly pulled me up. And then in a low tone, she whispered, "And there are ghosts outside at night who will eat disobedient little girls!"

I mentally snorted. Oh, the irony. She's telling that to a ghost who reincarnated? Really?

But, still. I was younger so I was still kind of inclined to respect the older ones so I just monotonously bobbed my head and said, "Sure, whatever."

Grandma chuckled and was about to walked away but then I realized that I had a great idea so I called out and she stopped, "Grandma?"

She turned around and looked at me with pure gentleness into her eyes and I gave a small puppy look as I asked, "Can you carry me?"

I'm a lazy ass, that much I know. But I was a toddler. Walking's too much for me.

...Not sports though. Perhaps.

We went down to a beautiful dining room. I didn't know that Sakuno, I mean me, was this rich. The table were some kind of carved wood that looks elegantly furnished. A set of six chairs that were most likely carved from the same type of wood were scattered opposite each other, three on both sides.

As we arrived and Grandma placed me into a seat, my mother arrived and then she placed wonderful and pleasant smelling dishes right in front of us. She sat on the chair besides me and opposite Grandma's.

There was a pause and mother told me, "So, let's eat ne, Sakuno dear?"

Just the three of us...?

I tilted my head to the side and asked, "Aren't we going to eat with dad?"

"Ah." There was momentary surprise between both of the older women and my mom reminded me, "Dad's working in the US, remember?"

"No."

I talked before I can even process things and I bit my lips as soon as I noticed that it was probably the wrong answer, if their expressions were any give-aways. I cleared my throat and asked, "Is there anything wrong?"

"N-nothing."

My mother shook her head and that was it. Before I knew it, mother and grandmother looked at me expectantly so I yelled in my squeaky voice, "Thanks for the food~"

And then the three of us ate. I almost drooled on the dessert which was a black forest cake and I sipped on my strawberry milk.

The plain combination is just delicious and I think that I might go to sweets paradise after this~

"Aaaah~" I opened my tiny lips as I explained, smiling adorably all the way, "It's so delicious!"

"Hahaha," Grandma chuckled as she patted my head, standing up from her seat and leaving the room in a few, nimble steps.

Eh...?

I tilted my head to the side and projecting my high-pitched toddler voice, I called out, "Grandma...?"

"Sakuno," She gave me a huge smile and then she added, "Grandma's a little tired, we'll start the lessons tomorrow, okay?"

"Promise?" I knew that I sounded... Hopeful. Or desperate. But I really wanted to learn, so...

"Promise."

A smile fell on my lips and Grandma walked out of the room, but not before telling both me and mom, "Goodnight."

"Ah," This time it was my mom who talked and then she approached me and gently asked, "Is little Sakuno sleepy, too?"

I wanted to shook my head but then again, that wouldn't look normal. So instead, I just put on an adorable act and I produced a small yawn as I sleepily agreed, "Yes."

"I see," Mother smiled and she nimbly took me into her arms and walked me to bed. How nice, as soon as we reached my little toddler friendly room, I was placed into a large crib that had a lot of stuff toys, I saw a familiar yellow rodent there, and mom kissed my forehead, "Goodnight, dear."

"Goodnight, mom~"

She nodded and she went and left me all alone in the room, not that I was afraid or anything. Anyway, I wonder what I should do tomorrow?

I know that I need to play tennis and that's already taken care off, but how am I supposed to spend my time when some rain comes? It's not like mom will allow me to to play outdoors. Hmmm... I'll just list some books and asked mom to buy it and I'll try to contact dad and coerce him to buying me a laptop.

And a Nintendo DS. I haven't finished the latest installment of Devil Survivor yet.

Aaaah. Now that I remember, an hour before the great collision with the large truck, I was playing with my Nintendo DS, fusing some demons in the said game.

I don't really understand why the hell is it that I can remember details about most of my life except the significant parts, which are the names.

I let out a small yawn.

Oh well... I have a lifetime to think about that.

"Wake up, Sakuno!"

A loud shout and a louder gong of some bell woke me up. I sat straight up, alert, and notice that Grandma was the one who shouted, a grin on her face as she stood by the door a pot on her hand.

What the actual six stages of hell?!

I'm sure that I'm a toddler so why… why the heck I'm I being woken up at so early in the morning and with a military kind of waking, too. Spartan.

I groggily yawned as I looked at Grandma blankly and asked, "Is there any earthquake? Fire?"

"Huh?"

The pure expression of confusion on Grandma's face was totally funny.

"Because, grandma," I paused as I let out another yawn. There was brief silence before I continued, "Why did you wake me up so early in the morning?"

She smiled at me and then she puffed up and informed me, "We're going to start our tennis lesson."

Oh my Yukimura.

Out of pure excitement, I unconsciously sang, "When the daylight comes, I have to go~"

"…"

Grandma looked at me like I was downright insane.

…Oops. Wrong song.

I cleared my tiny throat and asked Grandma, "Get me up…?"

"Fine, fine." She shook her head with a grin on her face and she walked towards me. She held me up and then placed me down the floor and she said, "There you go."

"Thanks!" I smiled and then I mused, "I don't want to sleep in a crib anymore."

No, really. I would prefer a small bed or something. At least that way, I can cough sneak out cough.

"Do you want a bed?" Grandma asked me as she sent me a sidelong glance, walking towards the door.

I followed after her as fast as my little legs can take me and then I nodded my head, "Yep."

"I think your mother had an extra one on the attic." She mused as we continue to walk through the tiled floors of the house. We were silent before Grandma spoke up, "I'll tell Yukari that you would prefer a bed."

"Thanks!" I answered happily as I bounced on my steps.

After we got the racquets from Grandma's room, we walked to the backyard. There was a beautiful garden full of beautiful daisies, lavenders and roses, I think that Yukimura will like this place. But the garden wasn't our destination.

Instead, it was a cemented place which was a tennis court. There was a basket filled with tennis balls and there was also a net in the middle of the cemented court.

I widened my eyes. Are we going to play?

"Not yet." Grandma seemed to have read my mind when she answered my unasked question. She looked at me and gestured to the half of the tennis court, the boundary being the net in the middle. She smiled at me and motioned, "Today, we're only going to use half of the court."

Aww.

"Don't make that face," She told me with a small grin on her features. She added, "Before you can play an actual match, you'll need to learn the basics, first."

But of course, I guess.

After all, I can't just win matches without even learning, and not even mastering, the basics. What am I, a mary sue?

"So…" She motioned to her racquet and told me, "We'll start by learning the proper grips."

Boring.

I want to be a kick-ass player already!

"Don't look at me like that." Grandma sighed and then she met my eyes and she seriously said, "Mastering the grips and finding the one that fits you the most is important."

Oh?

I tilted my head to the side and she continued, "It's like this, if you compared it to making a house. Grips will be the material that will be the composition of your house. If you use one that is the most natural to you, that means that you're building with a brick but if you use one that disables you in some way or form that means that you're building your house with straw."

Wise words.

"Ah." I nodded my head and then I said, "So that means that if I master the most natural one for me, it will bring out my potential or something like that?"

"Yes, you're smart for your age."

Naturally.

"But, we'll also need to learn all the grips," She informed me and then she added, "That way, we can find what will suit you the best. On another note, you don't necessarily need to master all of the grips but each of them should be at least passable."

I nodded my head again. Grandma's good at this but… isn't she overworking a four year old?

Not that I'm complaining, but…

"It's good to start young." She informed me and then returned back to the lesson. She motioned to the octagonal shape of the handle and she said, "Tennis handles have eight sides, since you're right-handed, you use the clockwise motion when you want to change grips."

I nodded my head and she continued, "Think of the top of the handle, the narrow side that looks down on the edge of the frame, as 12 o'clock."

"This is the Continental Grip." Grandma informed as soon as she showed the grip. She placed her hand on the racket and made some sort of V by forming her thumb and forefinger at 11 o'clock. She added, "You can use this grip as a flat grip to serve, volley or smash. You can also use it to slice a dropshot from the back of the court."

Slice?

"We'll cover about that on the next lesson," Grandma smiled and then she continued on, "Show me how you can do it and make a few swings using the Continental Grip."

I swear, Grandma sounded like some drill sergeant but I did it nonetheless. I formed my thumb and forefinger at the 11 o'clock and formed some kind of V. I swing my racquet back and forth.

"Good." Grandma nodded in acknowledgement after I made a few more swings.

"Next is the Eastern Grip." She moved her hand clockwise and her thumb and finger is somewhere between 12 and 1. She explained, "This grip allows a small amount of racket acceleration to the ball and will spin it slightly and keep the ball relatively flat."

I copied the movement, placing my thumb and finger similar to where Grandma placed hers and I noticed that it was somewhat like hand-shaking. I made a few swings and we moved on.

"Next is the Semi-Western." She moved her hand further round and placed the racquet in a deeper position. The thumb-finger is in between 2 and 3 o'clock. She said, "This is an ideal grip when you're trying to generate both the spin and the weight of the shot through the ball."

I nodded and placed the fingers in place, swinging a few more times than with the other grips before we continued.

"Now we have the Full Western," Grandma placed her grip beyond 3 o'clock. She informed, "This grip is twisted far so that the ball will be hit with the opposite face of the racquet and will generate a lot of racket speed."

I think that this one is easier than the others grip-wise because the position is anything beyond 3 o'clock. I swing a few times before we proceeded to another type of grip.

"This is the One-handed Backhand," She started from the Continental grip and then she moved it anti-clockwise. "Depending on the spin of the impact, you'll be moving the grip anti-clockwise."

I nodded and mimicked her grip. It was a little harder than the former grips but then again, I suppose it was because it was a different type.

"The last one is the Two-handed Backhand," She placed a forehand grip on her left hand and she explained, "You play with the non-dominant hand and for the right-handIers, you use the neutral continental grip."

I nodded and then tried it the continental grip with my left hand. It was a little tricky but I eventually got the hang of it after about thirty strikes.

By the end of the introduction of the grips, I was hungry.

I retract my statement from before because the grips were actually pretty interesting. Tiresome, too.

I felt my body clam up a little and I used the racquet to support my weight a little bit as I catch my breath. I remembered that even though I have about 16 years of mental age, my body was still that of a four year's old.

I wonder why Canon-Sakuno didn't take up the sports when she was younger. Since the anime-Sakuno was a total fail at tennis, I guess that the body I took might have been manga-Sakuno's, After all, the latter won a tennis championship in her second year of tennis experience. I took that from Horio, hahaha!

But really, manga-Sakuno won third place on the women's division, according to one of the PairPuri's that I've read before, that is.

Before I can even think any further, my thoughts were cut off since I saw my mom approach us and yelled, "Breakfast's ready!"

I smiled and felt adrenaline run in my little veins as I ran to the food like I was a tribute in the Hunger Games.

The food didn't disappoint me, too. There were cinnamon cereals in the table, accompanied by a set of apples. I took a frapple and bit it, aaah, it tastes so good.

What's even better was that, I had strawberry milk!

This is the life, yo.

When we finished eating and cleaned up the table, Grandma smiled at me and she asked, "Should we continue tomorrow?"

I shook my head.

No way in hell will I give up now that I had already started.

But of course, I couldn't say it that way because four year olds probably didn't curse so I rephrased my sentence, "I want to continue today."

A bright smile fell on Grandma's lips and her hands went and ruffled my hair. I jumped out of my seat, to the surprises of my companions, and landed gracefully. Well as graceful as I can be, anyway.

So we went back to the cemented court by the garden and I looked on to Grandma with excitement and I asked, "What will we do now? Twist serve? Triple Counters?"

"Hahaha," Grandma let out a chuckle and she shook her head, "We're going to change and practice the grips today."

Whaaaat?

"All day?"

Please, no.

"Yep."

I groaned but I still complied.

Through-out the afternoon, I was ordered to swing and practice different types of grips. It was hell but it was for development so I guess that it's okay.

Kind of.

"Continental Grip!"

"Eastern Grip!"

"One-handed Backhand!"

"Western Grip!"

"Eastern Grip!"

"Semi-Western Grip!"

That was the drill and by the end of the afternoon as dark clouds tainted the red sky, I felt my arms soring up a little, but not too much.

After all, I was supplied with breaks from time to time so that my little four year old body can keep up with the exercise. I'm actually amazed that I didn't fell or got dizzy or something.

In fact, I felt like my body was, little by little, getting the hang of things. But that's not to say that I already mastered all those grips. That's impossible because one, I'm just a four years old and my physical capabilities wouldn't allow that. The second is that I just learned it today and even though I memorized the types of grips, that doesn't mean that my body already mastered and perfected it.

Hey, I know that I have super analytical brain cells and everything but my body isn't like that.

After all, what am I, a Mary Sue?

Unless I'm one, I probably wouldn't be able to master some techniques in a day, not even in a week. A half a year sounds plausible and a month doesn't sound impossible as well.

A yawn escaped my lips and I just noticed that mom was watching us practice from the door. I sent her a sleepy smile and as Grandma approached me, I took her hand and walked with her.

…I wonder what's going to be our dinner for this night?

* * *

A/N: And that... is the end of the chapter :D This was 5K+ words. The longest I have written in any of my stories ever. O.O

I know, I know. Practicing at the age of four? But hey, if you want to be good at something, you better start young. I think. lol. There's some plotholes here and there but I actually left it there because it will be filled in on the later chapters.

Replies to reviews:

kuriko-chan: I updated! Thanks for the review and as you can see, she doesn't have a name so we can either call her New-Sakuno or Not-Sakuno, lol. Or even Sakuno. :) Whatever works for everyone, though, I myself kept calling her Not-Sakuno.

EnzeruFataima: Thanks, haha. I think my idea was unique lol. *gets hit by an apple* Canon-Sakuno's death. See, it's not dead per se, but something else entirely. It will be revealed in later chapters but yeah, Canon-Sakuno isn't in her body because Not-Sakuno is residing in her body. I don't know if I'm making any sense OTL.

About the RyoSaku pairing, it will depend on my mood when I write. That goes the same with other pairings too. :)

Tanaka Yue: Hahaha, thanks! *bows* I kinda liked the idea too. lol. *bricked*

casuallychich: The story will be a roller-coaster story with the ups, the downs, and the thrill. But that's the only thing that I can say :P


	3. Grips and footworks

**Sakuno, Maybe?**

* * *

Summary: Dying and being place in the toddler Sakuno's body? That's like more messed up than me massacring a hundred of people. With tennis balls, no less.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys! I feel like it's been a long time since I updated, so I am truly sorry for that. There would be another a/n down below and I hope that you guys would read it :)

**Disclaimer: **I don't own POT

* * *

"Eastern Grip!"

"Western Grip!"

"Continental Grip!"

"Eastern Grip!"

The words echoed as my body moved to a steady rhythm and I couldn't really help it when a sigh fell loudly from my lips. A disappointed one, at that.

And before anyone can raise their eyebrow because of the fact that I sound whiny, they should know that it has been a terribly boring week that has passed ever since I've became Sakuno.

In fact, it was terribly boring that I feel that I can just sleep through all things and hibernate. Like a cute and cuddly teddy bear.

Anyway.

It really has been boring, all these days the only thing I did was master the grips. Day by day, similar drills from before met me, at times accompanied by some jogging here and there.

It's not that I don't like the fact that I'm trying my hardest to at least barely master the grips, but there are times that I feel a little empty. I thought that after the first day of my practice I would be learning about volleys or lobs or something the next day, but that wasn't what happened.

Instead, I continued this drills for the grips, my hands mastering and familiarizing itself with the grips that I think it has became engraved in my subconscious or something like that.

"Sakuno."

Grandma's raspy voice brought me back to reality as I paused from my grips. Turning my eyes away from my brand new blue tennis shoes, I looked at my grandmother, Sakuno's as well, and I tilted my head to the side in obvious question. I knew that I looked cute with the tilt, after all, I'm an adorable toddler.

Adorable.

Grandma smiled at me and her beaming eyes moved towards the sky which was partly covered by clouds and the sun that was just beginning to rise up in the atmosphere.

It was… beautiful.

_Familiar. _

A softer but undeniably more mature voice spoke in my head, I had doubts for my sanity, and I felt little tears forming up my big, brown eyes. I blinked once, twice, and shook my head as a memory from my past life wherein I watched the sky resurfaced.

There was terse and solid silence between us as we both continued to look at the outstretched sky, a beautiful sight, considering the fact that it reminds me of Tsunayoshi Sawada.

And if you don't know who he is, then you should be prepared for an onslaught of attacks when you first wake up the next day.

I bet different members of the Mafia will hunt one down, especially if one doesn't know who the beloved Decimo is.

…kidding.

Probably.

He's just an anime character, and even though it hurts my otaku pride to the very core, I think that he isn't really real.

Though it sounds touché because I actually managed to be transported in some kind of anime universe. Weird.

I pursed my lips as I decided to ask, "What were you saying, Grandma?"

"We're going to practice and improve your footwork," She motioned to my little legs as she explained.

…What?

I tilted my head to the side and asked, "What…?"

"It's impressive that you've managed to grasp all the basic with the tennis grips," she pauses as she looks at me with beaming pride. She continued, "But I think that it would be better if you can have the proper footwork to accompany that grips mastery."

A new drill, then?

"In a sense, it's kind of a new drill, Sakuno." She informed me as she gently grabbed my shoulders as she leveled herself towards me. Grandma added, "If you manage to master it immediately, I'm sure that you would be excited for our next practice."

I cocked a bob of my head and then I inquired, "New drill."

"I won't spoil anything."

Bitch. And here I thought that I was probably her most important person.

She smiled at me and sat cross-legged at the concrete ground as she started to explain, me imitating the sitting as I listened to her curiously, after all, she-Grandma, was the one who helped train Samurai Nanjiroh.

"First thing that I'll have you do is jog every morning and every after practice," Grandma almost barked as she gave out the order, she continued, "After the early jog, we would dedicate two hours for your grip practice. Another two hours will be provided for the grip before the end of the practice."

So… what will happen in between them?

"Unlike in the grips, footwork does not need to be fully mastered," She paused as she corrected herself, "Not yet, anyway."

Her eyes looked soft and gleamed with pride as she added, "So I'll only give you three days to more or less grasp the basics of the footwork."

"Ne, Grandma," My mouth opened before I can even filter my thoughts and I asked, "Why do I need to learn about footwork when I should have been, uhm, practicing tennis and learning techniques?"

"Footwork IS a technique." Grandma stated with a small shook of her head, a small smile dawned on her features as she further elaborated, "Footwork is the foundation for success, it is only imperative to finish that in three days."

"Ah."

I nodded my head, as if I understood it. But in all actuality, I have no idea what the importance of this footwork drills is and I have no idea what the concept behind is, either.

Why shouldn't I start with service? Or returns?

Why did I have to pass a boring week with only practicing different grips all day? All of which has been drilled into my subconscious like…

…like something.

But.

I would participate.

I have no idea if this incoming footwork drills would be important and I have no idea if me being a master at grips are important as well.

But.

I will do this with my dying will!

Hahaha, Katekyo Hitman Reborn moment right there.

Aaah, I long for the days where I can just sit down my stubby little legs and just watch anime or play some computer games or buy the latest franchise of the latest game console but…

I can wait.

I think.

For a few more days, that is.

After all, I wasn't really patient in my past life, what more now that I have became a toddler? Sakuno or not, toddlers are generally impatient, add my super cool and super impatient attitude and you get this. A hyperactive toddler.

Wonderful.

I think my mother would be immensely proud with me.

"Sakuno!"

The voice rang me back to reality and I blinked twice before I changed my grip again, this time an Eastern Grip, following Grandma's drill sergeant orders.

Oh well.

* * *

For the past three days, I felt like I was in some Sims game, me doing things repeatedly, as if in some kind of cycle that goes on forever.

I always started with waking up early in the morning with a loud shout sponsored by Grandma. Immediately after, Grandma and I jog around the neighborhood for a while and then come home and rest for at least half an hour, small snacks in hand at the time. After that, I started practicing the grips, changing them as ordered and feeling as if the tennis racquet was some part of my body.

Thankfully, we have breakfast after two hours of that and then while we wait for our stomachs to get rested, so as to not throw up, Grandma entertains me with stories of her childhood, stories of her tennis achievements, and once, even a story about the Samurai Nanjiroh. It was cool, like I was hearing some fairy tale or legend, the latter being probable considering the fact that Ryoma's dad was actually some kind of tennis legend in here.

The next thing we do is practice my footwork. While running between courts and passing through numbered cones, I changed my grip depending on Grandma's order, sometimes even changing it while in the process of running. I think I fell down at least thrice.

We almost always ended the day with another two hours of practicing different grips and I think that I would be able to do any of the grips in my sleep.

It was the night of the third day and I wonder.

I remember in some of the later chapters that Ryoma's decade was some kind of the Generation for the prodigies, for the genius and for the talented. A thing that appeared every once in a decade or even more.

Will I…

Can I be a part of that decade, too?

Not to say that I'm interested in taking Ryoma's place and being the prince of tennis myself because I would get smuggled to the boy's team, but I meant it as being part of the girl's team and bringing it to the Nationals.

Can I do it?

Probably.

And even if I can't, I would still try. After all, I'm going to do it with my dying will!

And nothing, not even any Homunculus or a member of the Akatsuki can stop me.

I would… win.

Hahaha.

As dramatic and awe-inspiring I think I seemed, I think I need to sleep. I can feel my body aching and revolting and protesting and none of that is funny. In fact, it's irritating and it makes me sleepy.

Ugh.

* * *

I woke up… in a peaceful state.

It was mind boggling and absolutely confusing. I blinked twice before my eyes fully opened and I noticed, from my position on my brand new princess type bed that the sun was already pouring out from the windows. Have I overslept or…

No.

Oversleeping is out of question, what with Grandma here and commanding me every other minute.

But, if no one woke me, then…

Did Grandma leave?!

I haven't even practiced some serves or not even volleys, or lobs, or returns!

What the hell-

The door to my room creaked open and my mother peered in and smiled at me as she tilted her beautiful face and she gently said, "Good morning, Sakuno."

She was really beautiful.

Just like… Sakuno.

I mean, me. In a sense, that is.

Kicking my Winnie the Pooh covers with the force that a four year old that has trained for a week and a half straight can have, I sat up and let out a small yawn before I groggily asked, my hands instinctively rubbing my eyes, "Where's Grandma?"

"Haha," she sent out a small and tender chuckle as she fully opened the mahogany door and walked over the colored tiles as she approached me. Once she reached me, she combed my hair gently and she told me, "Mother met up with some of her students."

Students…?

Is it… Echizen Nanjiroh?

I blinked my eyes and I tilted my little head to the side and asked, "Did Grandma left me?"

"She'll come back." Mother assured me as a tender smile fell on her lips, her face lighting up with some sort of warm glow.

It was crazy, the way that I almost got attracted to it like a moth to a flare.

I nodded my head twice like an obedient little girl and my stomach had the courtesies and manners to rumble on like some kind of thunder or storm.

See? Even my stomach is awesome.

"Hahaha," mother giggled and then she carried me up and ever so gently laid me down to the carpeted part of the floor and she held out her hand as she said, "Shall we eat?"

I'm hungry.

"Yep!"

I nodded my head and gave out my most charming smile as I tried to act all cutesy like a toddler would. I even swayed a little and placed small bounce on my steps. I swear, if some kind of person who owns the Abercrombie and Fitch saw me right now, I would most probably be their latest model.

For toddler clothes, but still.

Sakuno really is pretty.

That was my last thought as I took my mother's outstretched hand with a cheeky smile and we both walked off, going down the mahogany stairs and walking past one Victorian statue to reach our dining hall.

I'm hungry.

I need pocky.

And an apple.

And a milk.

And an orange.

And a mango.

And cake.

And chocolate.

So.

Basically every food.

* * *

I played with the Nintendo DS, a gift that I managed to request from dad, and I tweaked with it a little bit as I sat on one of the couch of the living room. Grandma hasn't arrived.

Yet.

I pursed my lips and I inserted a game into the cartridge and started to play.

What did I play?

Of course, it's Pokemon!

Who doesn't want it, anyway?

So… it was already Pokemon Black 2 and I heard something about Pokemon alphabet coming out later on this year or something. Probably next year.

I opened the game and almost banged my head to a nearby table when another professor popped up and asked for my gender.

Again.

And the name, too.

Aah, as nostalgic and beautiful it is, it can become boring.

And annoying.

Good thing they don't ask for the age or else I bet female gamers will create some riot. After all, I quote this from somewhere, 'Never ask a woman her age.'

I don't really know why but it was probably some kind of taboo.

But, personally, if I wouldn't sound insane, then I probably would love to tell everyone what my age is. My age as Sakuno, and my age as my former self combined.

I bet people will get a little confused and crazy after that.

Heh.

I played with the game and picked an Oshawott. I really like water types for some reason that I don't know.

So I chose it and decided not to give it some nickname.

Almost half an hour past and I really didn't feel any hand muscle cramps or anything at all, even despite the fact that I should get them.

I was four, after all.

Maybe, just maybe, the practice paid off.

The grips one, that is.

After all, do you really need footwork to play with Nintendo DS, eh?

As I walked off and finished beating up Cheren, the door creaked open.

And lo, and behold!

Grandma appeared.

In all her grandmother glory, she went and gave me a smile as she asks me, "Have you eaten?"

"Breakfast and lunch," I casually replied with my high pitch and I tried my best to give a badass shrug with my tiny shoulders. There was a pause between us as I saved the game and as I flipped the console off, my gaze followed Grandma's and I asked, "Where did you go, Grandma?"

"To meet some old friend," She told me as she approached me and gave a really bright smile that can compare with the sun. It would have been beautiful but for Yukimura's sake it was kind of creepy. Honestly.

"Aah." I just nodded my little head as I asked again, "Are there any practice today?"

"No." Grandma shook her head as she sat down beside me and looked into the distance with a kind of dreamy gaze, much like the ones that I saw in movies and all those jazz.

Using my greatest and most powerful weapon, I tilted my head to the side and asked, "Why?"

Yep. I really don't understand why I need to stop when I already have got this far.

"Because," She stopped staring on the blank space like some kind of lunatic and instead focused on me as she gave a quite contemplative look and stated, "Your body needs rest."

What logic. I mentally snorted as I let my thoughts wander for a while.

For a fact, I feel that I don't need to undergo rest and all that because really, I felt that I was reaching my toddler peak in there by practicing every single day continuously.

All my wanderings halted as I heard Grandma so rudely interrupt my musings, "Don't give me that look."

I tilted my head to the side in question and asked, "What look…?"

"That look where you look like you can kill off some innocent toddlers like some timed bomb." Grandma's answer was so blunt and straightforward that I couldn't help myself when I snorted. She paused for a while as her brows furrowed and she muttered, "But then again, you are a toddler too."

As if.

I may be a toddler but I'm a totally impressive, magical girl who came down from the heavens!

Insert drumroll, please.

I mentally coughed, that was all a joke.

So, anyway.

I bit my lips as I thought of any potential conversation starters when I asked, "Eto, Grandma, can I join some tennis tournament to try my skills?"

The plain surprise on Grandma's face was enough to make me laugh all of my life. That and make Tezuka and probably even Sanada crack up and destroy their records of being rocks.

She opened and closed her mouth before her expression once again turned to the grateful and joyful once as her eyes glistened when she met my eyes. There was clearly a pleased smile on her face as she asked, "You want to play in the tournaments?"

"Yep!" I answered as energetically as I could, bobbing my head up and down repeatedly as I gave her a childish and toothy grin.

"That's great." She commended as she ruffled my hair and then she stopped that course of action as she informed me, "It's too bad that there aren't any tournament for children your age, though."

Aww. And here I am, excited to kick some baby ass on the tennis courts.

"Then," I tilted my head to the side as I pondered and asked, "When can I join tournaments?"

There was a pause as Grandma's hands flew to her jaw as she thought with a pursed lip. She looked at me before she announced, "When you reach six years of age."

What?!

That's like… two years!

I don't want to wait two years to show off my non-existent skill.

…But then again, maybe it's for the better? If I joined the way I am now, even though this fact would hurt my pride, I don't think that I'm quite on par with the others, considering that I have just trained for a week, despite the harshness and intensity of it all.

There was another round of silence before Grandma commented in her kind of raspy voice, "I think that it's good that you're starting to get dedicated at such a young age."

I know, I know. I mentally patted myself in the back.

"I just…" I bit my lips as I tried to form a sentence that would be able to describe my ideas that were running rampant at the moment. I paused and then I continued where I left off, "I just want to feel the joys of playing tennis."

For what seemed like the hundredth time since I have became Sakuno, I saw Grandma's eyes turned watery and then she looked at me like I was something that was more prized than the Philosopher's Stone and she whispered, "That's essential."

…What?

I opened my mouth to ask her in my tiny voice, "What do you mean?"

There was slight flame and flicker in Grandma's eyes but it faded away as soon as she met my gaze and she just shook her head and gave a good-natured laugh, "Nothing."

I blinked my eyes owlishly and just decided to nod my head.

Stretching up my short and toddler legs a little bit, I mused, "I want to win a tournament once I become eligible."

It seems that my musings were kind of loud because Grandma replied to it as she entered the conversation, "You can win if you start practicing now."

"But." I pursed my lips as I thought of some kind of reasonable reason and I deftly pointed out, "I only have two years."

"Two years can create a huge difference." Grandma said as she gave a nugget of her wisdom, metaphorically, of course.

And that's when a random thought got me.

Someone should tell that to Horio.

Still more silence appeared but it was comfortable so I just sat there and went all relaxed as I slouched into the comfortable sofa.

Of course, like Grandma usually does, she so rudely interrupted my lounging around as she said, "I think that you'll be excited for tomorrow's drills."

Excited?

Am I finally going to learn some kick-ass moves and kick the butt of all those unworthy mortals who dare challenge me?

And be all awesome like Yukimura Seiichi?

"You'll be starting on working the different kind of tennis moves tomorrow," She clarified as she looked up the ceiling. She continued to explain, "Service, lobs, and volleys. I'll teach all the basics for all three tomorrow."

Close enough.

I nodded my head excitedly and then I asked, "How about returns, though?"

"I'll explain it in more details tomorrow." She gave a mysterious smile at me and then she stood up and briefly walked out of the room, just like that.

But not before ruffling my hair, of course.

I have a feeling that everyone wanted to ruffle and play with my hair. Not that I don't understand, though, Sakuno-er, me, I mean, has really soft hair that I bet I can star in some shampoo commercials and everything.

A pause.

…I still haven't figured out my name, my real name, and I haven't figured anyone else from the past as well.

Throughout the week and a half stay since I've been here, I sometimes dreams of little fragmented memories but they're just… that.

They're like broken pieces of glass or parts of a puzzle that won't ever be completed.

I slapped my face.

At the very least, I'm alive, right?

And hell, I'm in a world where everyone looks so bishie that I can just spend the rest of my life fangirling over them. That is, if I don't have kicking butts to attend.

But kidding aside, I guess I should just be grateful.

My stomach rumbled just in time to voice out its opinion.

…I'm hungry.

* * *

A/N: Slightly shorter than the previous chapter but still, I'll try my best to atleast make it, 3500+ words per chapter. I'm sorry that it has been almost a month since I last updated my story. :(

The toddler arc would be finish by Chapter 5, more or less, and by then, it would be the start of another arc.

I really love everyone's support, so thank you all for reading, reviewing and subscribing :D

Replies to reviews:

alee26606: Here is it! Thanks for the support! :)

kuriko-chan: Chibi new-Sakuno really is total awesomesauce. Lol. XD I'm still undecided about the pairings, hehe ;) I really love the Yukimura part, too, because Yukimura is cool and he's the Child of God, lol. Thanks for your long and awesome review and I hope that you would like this chapter, too. :)

Yuu: Thanks for the review, and yep, I'll try my best to continue and update this story :D

13: Thank you! You're a great author, so I'm really grateful for that insight, hehe. And I would try my best to update the story :D

SoshiGee: Thank you! ;)

EnzeruFataima: Oh, it isn't me, haha. She's an OC that has been reincarnated to POT Universe or something like that. I already had her character planned out way before so she isn't me. I already planned what kind of person she would be, hehe. :) And what happens to Canon-Sakuno is a mystery that will reveal itself in time ;) I wouldn't want to spoil anything. XD


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